Why Record an Unplugged or Acoustic Record?
One of my favourite records that pops up on my Spotify Wrapped top 5 albums every year since its release is not a flashy cinematic masterpiece — it’s a quiet acoustic album. It’s an effortlessly simple album — mostly acoustic guitar and vocals, with occasional piano and the rare touch of electric guitar. I often play it when I’m taking a bath, packing up the studio after a big day, or driving home late at night. All 45 minutes of the album hold me in a kind space right between relaxation and meditation. It won’t scare you and it won’t put you to sleep. It’s a rare quality indeed to find in a record.
Sometimes as both recording artists and fans we need a break from the intensity of a full production. How often have you found yourself enjoying the stripped-back acoustic version of one of your favourite artist’s songs more than the full band version.
One of my best mates repeatedly tells me he
almost always prefers the acoustic version to the band version.
This is what makes NPR’s Tiny Desk series so incredible. There are artists I hear on Tiny Desk and love. Yet when I listen to them on Spotify I find them so utterly different and not to my taste that I end up only listening to the Tiny Desk version.
And before NPR Tiny Desk there was MTV unplugged. Anyone old enough will know how iconic those performances were.
These stripped presentations of songs simply tell the
timeless truth as it might be heard around a campfire,
intimate and vulnerable, raw and honest.
You might have a back catalogue you'd like to reimagine — plucking favourites from years of releases to share anew.
You might be just starting out, looking for a simpler project to warm into the recording and releasing journey.
You might simply be an acoustic artist who doesn’t see yourself taking on a band — now or ever.
Or you might want to offer an unplugged version of a new single as a marketing companion.
You may find yourself considering a project like this for any of these reasons — or something entirely your own.
Unplugged, acoustic, stripped back records have an incredibly valuable place in an artist’s journey.
If you're considering an acoustic record, I’d love to chat about it. Sole Canopy is a uniquely intimate space with the perfect energy to carry such work — and even if it’s not the right fit for you, deciding to pursue the project will bring you one step closer to finding the place that is. And that, frankly, would make my day.
